How does a White Evangelical guy from Southern California end up as a jail chaplain and pastor to Latino gang members in the Skagit Valley, north of Seattle? How has that work been a process of mutual transformation for him and the men he works with? How do differences in White and Latino cultures affect the possibilities and challenges of ministry in jail? How does the White Savior complex manifest in him and in the churches he equips? What spiritual practices “work” for men in solitary confinement? What are the broader lessons for Christians about with whom and where to read the Bible, the connection between visiting the imprisoned and genuinely belonging to a place, and the messiness and gloriousness of following Jesus?

I talked about all this with Chris Hoke – Founder and Executive Director of Underground Ministries, Presbyterian minister, author, father, and husband.  Chris has been working as a jail chaplain in the Skagit Valley for nearly twenty years. In 2015 he wrote Wanted: A Spiritual Pursuit Through Jail, Among Outlaws, and Across Borders (HarperCollins) about his own journey and transformations in the gang members he has worked with. As a chaplain he also founded Underground Coffee, a roasting business employing formerly incarcerated people, and Underground Writing, a writing program for at-risk communities.

For all his success, what stood out most from our conversation was Chris’ honesty and vulnerability about his failure. In 2018 Chris learned about betrayal and deceit committed by Neaners - a former gang member whom Chris had accompanied as a chaplain through prison and release, one of the main people in his book, his Underground Ministry Co-Founder, and a “best friend” and “primary teacher.” Chris reflected on his terror, shame, despair and near nervous breakdown as the truth came to light;  his own willful blindness leading up to the revelation; and how, out of that trial, and despite his initial resistance, Chris started with others the One Prisoner One Parish program to equip faith communities to build supportive relationships with prisoners and accompany them after their release.

Helpful Links:

• I found this article to be a helpful summary of the theological framing for One Parish One Prisoner. It connects the Eastern Orthodox understanding of resurrection as breaking open the gates of Hades with “unburying” people from mass incarceration.

• This written interview with Chris goes into more detail about the connections Chris sees between the history and ecology of the Skagit Valley and its prison population

• You can read more of Chris’ work and listen to him here.

• Chris refers to a handful of academic and theologians whose lives or work has shaped him: Tony Campolo, James Allison, Rene Girard, Michelle Alexander

• To get involved with One Parish One Prisoner, or to make a donation, go here

• Chris talks about Bob Ekblad at Tierra Nueva as an important mentor. Bob’s book is Reading the Bible with the Damned

• The book Chris recommends for teaching Centering Prayer to men in prison is Finding God Within by Ray Leonardini

• Chris’ book is Wanted: A Spiritual Pursuit Through Jail, Among Outlaws, and Across Borders

• Chris refers to Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, and her call for a new Underground Railroad